


The Drowning of Tony Stark

by Kakasakufangirl



Category: Avengers (Comics), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Ghosts, Character Turned Into a Ghost, Child Death, Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, Childhood Trauma, Drowning, Ghost Drifting, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Spirit World
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-19
Updated: 2016-08-18
Packaged: 2018-08-09 14:11:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7804864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kakasakufangirl/pseuds/Kakasakufangirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Waking up and a strange place with strange people while strange things happen to him is not at all scary for Tony, in fact, it's kind of spirit lifter he'd been looking forward to.</p><p>Tony Stark at age thirteen had died. How? He doesn't know. None of them know how they died either. They just remember the bright light and then waking up in this void place that turned out to be the wonderland they were searching for. They stay here and do whatever they want, dream of whatever they want. It's like a happy ending to the Never Ending Story they've always wanted.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Drowning of Tony Stark

**Author's Note:**

> I suck at summaries I know. Please hate if you want.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony meets knew people who explain to him why he was here and what exactly happened that caused his death as they go into the memory bank.

He can't see. Well he can, just not as good. Everything is blurry and he feels trapped inside this vacant plance devoid of air. Every time he tries to breath his lungs feel like they've collapsed. Maybe because they are. There are sounds emitting above him. He looks and tries to reach out with his hand that feels like a wet noodle; it's so tired. He tries to scream as he see blurry faces above the surface but he can't due to the liquid that is gushing in and out of his mouth.

What is this feeling?

'What is happening to him?' He thinks to himself trying to lash out on whatever was weighing him down. He was scared. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think correctly. Everything was happening so fast he didn't even know what to do.

He tried to shake the feeling of hopelessness off of him as he tried to reach the bottom of this bottomless pit. He wiggled his toes to see if his feet could skim the bottom but all he felt was nothing. Nothing. Nothing! His mind screamed at him as he because to fully panic now. He was sinking down into nothing. He would look to make sure but he was too afraid of confirming it.

He felt his heart start to slowly stop working as he descended further into the darkness. The figures above him were nothing but faint memories in his head that he could no longer see or imagine in his head or with his eyes. If he could breathe, he would scream. If his eyes, which he couldn't tell if they were open or closed in the dark, didn't feel like they were burning; he'd cry.

Nothing.

He could feel nothing.

He was fading into nothing.

More like nothing was fading into nothing.

  


~ • ~

  


Whatever was happening to him from before was gone now. He felt normal. As normal as he could feel when whatever was happening to him happened. He wouldn't call it exactly normal since his mind felt ranked over and his heart was beating as if it was none existent before. He felt lighter than air but also more sturdier in his body. Everything just felt like it was going to be alright.

"Hey," a voice said. It sounded so far away as if it were traveling light waves to get to him. "Hey, are you alright?" Now it sounded too close for his comfort. He wanted to get up and be prepared for whoever the person was calling out to him. Their voice sounded so disfigured and distorted that he couldn't tell if it was a male or a females voice.

As he tried to open his eyes he was met with a bright light shinning down on him. He couldn't see for the next few seconds but the voice that was coming extremely close to him now was starting to sound human. That was good. Human was good.

For all he knew he was getting beamed up by an alien ship and was being abducted like in Fourth Kind. He shook his head. That would be stupid. It was a movie not real life. In real life, aliens wouldn't kidnap kids and study them. They'd just kill them off so they wouldn't have to deal with humans arrogance and idiocy.

No he wasn't being abducted.

When he tried to open his eyes again the light was still there just duller as it continued to shine down upon him. He kept them open this time and tried to fight the none existence ache he thought would be there. Nothing. He felt nothing. No pain, no collapsing of lungs, nothing. Everything just seemed fine.

Tony grabbed his head with his hand which also felt none existent until he thought about it. It tingled but nothing hurt. The boy tried to sit up only to have hands push him back down. He struggled to get up on to feel those same hands keep him still.

"Stay still for a little bit. Your not fully awake yet." A soft but caring voice said. If it was any softer, he knew he would hardly hear a thing from it. Then a face came into view. It was a boy who looked a little younger than he, who had curly dark brown hair and a small smile attached to his face.

"Are you okay? You don't feel any pain do you. Is that why you were clutching your head?" The boy bombarded him with questions. "Can you feel yourself slipping away into the line? Do you see it?" The line? What the hell was this kid talking about?

He felt the boy help him sit up as everything felt a little dizzy for him. Now that he was sitting up he realised that he was in a room, on an operation table. There were IV's, respirators and all kinds of machines around him. The light was fixated on him so he moved it out his way so he could see the room clearer.

There, ahead of him, were two chairs seated in a row not being occupied by anyone. His parents should be here not this kid, he thought inwardly. To the left of him was this large windows were he could see that itwas raining outside. He could see nothing but a huge tree on top of a far away hill. To his right he was another window that lead out to the hallway. Next to it was an opened door. No one was walking past or standing outside of it. In fact the whole place sounded empty.

"What's...going on?" Tony asked the only other person in the room. He didn't get a response back though for the boy was too deep in thought. "Where am I and where're my parents?" Worry started to kick in.

Why was he here all alone in a place he doesn't remember going to with a boy he's never met? Was this just a slow day in the hospital or just some kind of sick joke that his father was doing to him so he could punish him? Where the hell were all the nurses? Surely there was someone here that could give him answers and who was this guy standing by the side of his bed. This kid might have escaped from the insane asylum and killed everyone except him just because he wanted a friend.

He wouldn't know what to do in a situation like that.

"I don't know." The boy answered honestly. Tony started deep into the others eyes trying to detect some sort of lie or deception but found none. "To be honest. I know that you woke up like the rest of us here only in a different memory bank, I just don't know how you got here."

Tony nodded his head in understanding. "Wait did you say others? There are more people here!" He hopped off the slap table even though the boy protested to his quick movements. "Where are they?" He asked as he walked out into the hallway.

He could hear the boy scurrying after him as Tony set off in another direction. He was down the hall before anymore conversation could go on. He ran past the many rooms with opened doors that had no one inside them. He kept going until he reached the end of the hall which had a set of doubled doors. Without hesitating, he pushed the doors opened and ran outside.

He expected some kind of greeting from his parents except he got a whole different scenery. The area had changed from a dull looking hospital to a beautiful field with all types of flowers growing around that same tree he saw just outside his window.

"What?"

"How did this get out here? I just...I just saw it outside my window. " he turned towards the boy who had just caught up with him. "It was raining. It was dark and stormy and it was raining. I saw the raindrops on my window."

"Did you?" He smiled. "That's the thing about this place. Nothing is ever as it seems. You may see a beautiful girl walking down the street only to turn around and see that she's actually an ugly hag. I friend might be a foe. A stranger a close relative, everything here turns into whatever you can imagine."

"No, I saw what I saw. It was raining and you, you were wearing a gown. So was I." Tony said as he tried to go back inside the door they just came from but found it gone. This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening.

"You saw what you wanted to see. What you wanted to feel. Your mind woke up expecting it to be inside a hospital and you were but that was as far as you imagined it to be. I just had the opportunity of finding you before you woke. I changed with your surroundings as you did." The boy pointed down at Tony's clothes which were now his regular clothes.

A long sleeved orange shirt with a black button up over it. He had on tan shorts that ran as far as his knees which were covered in dirt and cuts like he'd been kneeling on something. He had on regular white flat shoes that were slightly mudded with cuffs on his socks. He had changed from his gown in the hospital back to his clothes he wore before he got here.

"Where am I?" Tony asked again as he looked back up at the boy. "Who are you?"

The boy simply smiled as if he had a secret. He walked ahead of Tony walking up the hill towards the tree which caused him to follow. He climbed up the hill with little challenge and stared over at the beautiful scenery ahead of him. There was a playground empty of any kids, all of the slides and monkey bars screamed at him to come play. While that was going on it merged with a large store that had a sign Toy Store hung on top. Behind it was an amusement park with all kids of rides kids enjoyed.

It was everything a kid could dream of and more. "My name is Bruce and this...this is paradise..." The boy, Bruce nodded slowly taking in the scenery as if it was the last time he'd see it. Tony stared in awe at the sun as it slowly began it's descend behind the park and store.

  


~ • ~

  


"Hey Bruce get down here! We got something to show you! It's new!" Another voice shouted from below. It was a kids voice, male but Tony couldn't see who exactly was making it. The hill was so high that it toppled over the area like a mountain when just minutes ago he had climbed it like a small step.

Bruce lit up at the sound of the voice and looked at him. With his eyes he told him that he'd tell the newcomer more if he'd come with him. "We should probably go. Clint's not that patient especially when something new blooms in. Plus I believe their going to want to meet you."

Without saying a word he set off leaving behind a very confused Tony. He still had so many questions. Where was he? The boy, Bruce, didn't exactly answer him. Only opting to tell him that he didn't know himself. Why was he here? He didn't really answer that either, in fact, Tony believed that he was purposely avoiding the question.

He wouldn't find out unless he followed him. "Wait up!" He called after the boy who was already halfway down the hill. Easily Tony caught up with Bruce since he was a little bit faster than he was descending the hill. While he was faster, Bruce was more carful and didn't have to be told twice when not to run down a steep hill.

The young boy slipped forward causing him to knock into the shorter boy making them both go tumbling. Once they reached the bottom of the hill they were both met with the amused face of a blond, who didn't care for their softcries of pain.

"How many times must Nat tell you not to rush down the hill? You know how often you can take a tumble after being on that thing." He, Clint didn't wait. He grabbed the boy by his arms and lifted him up before moving on to Tony who resisted a little. He still didn't know where he was and he planned to find out, not make friends.

"Who's this?"

"Oh he's the newbie." Bruce said wipping the non existent dirt off his pants. "I was taking a walk by the river and found him lying about. When I tried to wake him he changed his memory bank before I could wake him. Newbie this is Clint."

"My name, is not newbie!" Tony protested loudly.

"My my, Mr. Banner. Did you not bother to ask our dear new friend here his name? Gasp, shame on you. Your supposed to be the nice one." Clint teased as he elbow poor Tony, who was lost among this whole conversation.

"I'm not the nice one and I just...f-forgot." Bruce became suddenly flustered and began to stutter like it was a defect. His face reddened with embarrassment as he tried to think of something clever to say before his friend said anything more.

"Oh your right your the cute one. Steve's the nice one, my mistake." To which he received a very harsh punch to the arm causing the blond to knock into Tony. "Anyway, what's your name kid?" Clint asked all cocky as if he wasn't just teasing the other boy.

"Anthony, my name is Anthony Stark but people call me Tony." Feeling as if they were holding back something from him he ignored it and the realization that both eyes were on him now. "I want to know what's happening here? What's going on?"

Clint gave him a look. He seemed confused. Then the blonde leaned over towards Bruce who held a guilt ridden expression. "You didn't tell him?" He whispered. Not good enough because the newcomer could still hear him.

"Tell me what?"

"I thought we all promised we'd do it together, you know after the whole Thor and Nat thing." Bruce whispered right back. Now that Tony had a hard time hearing but none the less he still heard it. Clint nodded his head.

"What? What happened? Who's Nat and Thor?" Curiosity killed the cat but that never stopped the boy before. "Could you two please tell me what's going on? Why am I here? Where is here?" He felt fed up with all the secrecy and avoiding of his questions. He just wanted a simple answer not some three part diagram and essay.

The blonde just smiled. It was the same one that Bruce gave him when he wanted to show him something. 'No no, not again.' Tony thought inwardly. "In order for me to answer your question, you have to come and meet the rest of the group."

"No I want answers now!" Tony demanded.

"Sorry newbie, that's not how things go here. You gotta meet the family in order for me to explain everything that's happening to you right Bruce." The boy frowned and shook his head. "Well, your no help. Anyway, you still have to meet the others or your not getting jack shit...from me at least. I don't know about the others but in oder for you to get information from them you'd have to meet them anyway sooooo, am I making any sense newbie?"

Tony sighed. This guy and his weird way of doing things. "I guess." He shrugged. If he was this far down the rabbit whole then why not go a little further. What's a little more madness in his life? The blonde seemed fine with it, hell he was cracking jokes and Bruce, the one person he felt he could trust, seemed fine.

"Alright! All aboard the Thoughtless Express!" Clint shouted as he waited by the edge of a deep pit. It was the one true thing separating them from wonderland and the steep hill with the tree on it. It seem to circle the area of the place, creating this deep pot whole around the place.

"What are we waiting for exactly?"

"Exactly!"

Bruce simply rolled his eyes and stepped closer to Tony. "He just means we're waiting for the train to come and pick us up. That's where the others are waiting for us."

"Huh?" Even though the boy explained it Tony still didn't get what he was saying. "But their are no train tracks."

"Your thinking like a Breather!" Clint tapped his head as he climbed up on a gate that he could've sworn was never there. In fact there was a gate surronding the whole pit now. "Baby where we're going, we don't need train tracks to map out a coordination for us. We map out our own destination."

Tony was about to ask Bruce what he was talking about when he heard the sound of a train whistle loudly like he was standing in front of a track. "Woohoo! Yayayayayaaaaa! There she blows!" The genius smiled as he figured Clint was a wild one.

He turned his head in the direction the blonde was pointing at and could see it. Clint was right. That thing didn't have tracks, in fact it was floating, gliding on thin air as if nothing weighed under it. The hug machine drove rightup to them making Tony wonder who eexactly was driving this thing.

"Let's go boys!" With that Clint disappeared out of sight and into the floating abyss of the train. Bruce gave him a soft smile before following the boy shortly after. Tony hesitated.

If he stayed here he wouldn't know what to do or where to start looking for answers which he'd been told resided in these people he knew nothing about or even who they were. While he did like Bruce and kind of trusted him, he didn't like that he kept secrets from him and Clint. Well he was a different case entirely. He was wild unpredictable. Tony didn't like that but he felt as long as he didn't get on the boy's bad side he'd be good. Besides, he seemed like a pretty cool dude.

On the other hand, going with people he didn't know all that well didn't seem like a good idea either. They could be tricking him. Put him under some hallucinative drug that makes him see things the way they want him to see. They could've planted things in his mind to make him see kids all lost and around his age, just to make him trust them. Not a sound theory but a theory no less.

While he knew they wouldn't wait for him all day he did know one thing. If he wanted answers then he'd have to go with them to find out what they knew. What if they were lying to him? Well, it wouldn't be the first time. Then he'd just go find answers elsewhere. He wouldn't know unless he tried though.

Tony sighed. "Hey newbie, you coming or what?" He heard Clint's voice call after him. He rolled his eyes. 'Let's just get this over with,' he thought painfully as he stepped aboard the train. As soon as he was on it started moving not even waiting for him to sit down. He fell on the steps as a hand was offered in front of his face.

For a second he stared at it perplexed. It was slightly rugged but thin at the same time. He looked up to see two blue orbs peering down at him with mild interest. The mouth twisted up in some kind of concentration as the one behind the looks just waited for him. Blonde hair, lighter than Clint's met his eyes. It wasn't like the other boy's instead it was more like it was cut short.

"You couldn't just wait until he sat down Clint?" The tall thin boy said as he turned towards the wild one with a slight bit of anger directed at him. He seemed uncomfortable with Tony's staring which is why he still held out his hand for the boy to take but distracted himself with arguing with the other.

Clint, who Tony thought was driving the train, just peeked his head around the corner from him and smiled. "No. We have things to do, memories to see." Before rushing back to his seat he tapped the taller boy on the noise.

With a sigh of annoyance the blonde turned back to, Tony who was still on the stairs peering up at him, offered him a genuine smile. "Ignore him. While I'm sure you've already met him, that's Clint. He'll drive you to the funny farm and back."

He heard a small reply of "True!" before he he tired standing up. "Well aren't you going to take Steve's hand or stare at it all day twinkle toes." This time a female voice called out to him. Tony gawked for a second as if he wasn't going to meet another girl ever again but then regained his composure as he gripped the offered hand tightly.

Steve just smiled awkwardly as he let the short boy past him and into the carrier. Tony gave him a nod before moving more inside the main station. There he could see two other faces that he'd never seen before.

There was the girl, who he suspected was Nat, sat cross legged by a window seat behind a couple empty seats. Her red hair was short and curly as they bounced as she shook her head. She was wearing a long sleeved, dark blue almost black, thin turtleneck sweeter that ran down to her wrists. She had on a short jean skirt that rid up her lower thighs and stockings underneath with black shoes.

A few rows down was a tall slightly muscular boy with long locks of golden hair. He had piercing icy blue eyes that scanned him up and down before turning his attention back on the scenery outside. He had on a light grey unbuttoned jacket with a black shirt underneath it. His dark blue jeans brought out the light that shinned in his eyes making Tony realized how pure they were. He seemed relaxed and calm as he sat with one leg crossed over his other one while his arms stretched out over the back of the seats.

Nervously he watched each and everyone of them not sure what to do. "Are you gonna sit down or are you going to stare at Thor all day?" The girl, Nat, said as he snapped back to reality and rushed to find a seat. He was seated in between the red head and the large blonde boy.

"What's your name kid?" The tall blonde asked his eyes shinning with curiosity.

"That's Anthony Stark but everyone calls him Tony apparently!" Clint shouted from the front seat. His body was vibrating with excitement.

"I find Tony to be too familiar of a name. I'll stick with twinkle toes for now, until I get to know you better." Natasha said as she directed her attention towards him.

"Tony is fine with me."

"I'll call you Tony, Tony." Bruce said.

"No, newbie is what I give all newcomers." Clint shrugged. The boy was a ticking time bomb in a but case.

"I'll stick with Anthony for now thank you." Thor said.

"That's not necessary." Tony protested. He crossed his arms over his chest and pouted like a child. He really wasn't helping his case much by doing so but who cared at the moment.

"I usually call everyone by last name basis, Stark." Steve nodded towards him. The blonde seemed to be the only sensible one to talk to throughout his who time being there, besides Bruce of course. He could argue that Natasha was being reasonable but he did just meet her.

The boy just sighed. "Can I finally have some answers about this place?" They've been avoiding the question for the last few minutes. While he enjoyed meeting this motley crew he wanted to get out of this place and go home to his parents who he was sure wanted to know where he was.

The red head stifled a laugh as she looked towards Clint and Bruce. "Asgardian agreement?" The two nodded. "Alright kid. We'll tell you straight up what's going on here. You don't ask any questions until we're done okay." This time it was Tony's turn to nod. "Steve want to start us off."

"What's the last thing you can remember?"

"I...I don't know. I remember being in the car with my parents. We were heading to the summer lake house in (State). When we got there my mother told me to go unpack before we headed out for a picnic that day. My father was showing me how to fish." He racked his brain trying to figure out the last thing that happened. "After a few hours of being there my parents got into an argument and left me there by myself. I was throwing pebbles into the river on the dock and next thing I know I woke up here."

For a while no one said any thing. Each were processing the information given to them, assessing how to deal with the problem at hand. In their minds, silence gave them enough time to prolong the inevitable when in actuality, it just caused Tony to become anxious.

"Tough break buddy but you won't have to worry for long about that." Clint said as he stretched out in his seat.

"Why not?"

"Because we're going to dig up your memory baby boy."

"Please don't call me that." Tony whispered under his breath as the train whistled and tooted, it's wheels trudging on a none existent track.


End file.
